JP5182614B2 - Search device, navigation device, and search program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a search device, a navigation device, and a search program. For example, the present invention relates to a device that supports input of a search term.

In recent years, guiding a vehicle by a navigation device has been actively performed.
The navigation device has a function of searching for a route from a departure place to a destination, a function of detecting a position of the own vehicle using a sensor such as a GPS (Global Positioning System) satellite or a gyro, and a route to the destination and the own vehicle. It has a function to display the current location of the map on the map.
In general, in a navigation device, as proposed in Patent Document 1, a plurality of items (name reading, genre, address, etc.) are stored in the destination data, and a place name / facility name of the destination is searched. In this case, candidate points are narrowed down by inputting the name, address, telephone number, etc. from the touch panel.
When input by reading or search by genre is completed, the narrowed candidate points are displayed in a list on the display screen, and a desired destination is designated from the list.

The search condition can be set by a logical operation expression obtained by combining a plurality of search terms with a logical operator, and the navigation apparatus narrows down the search target according to the search condition.
As described above, there is the following “information search method” as a technique for narrowing down a search target using a logical operator.
JP 7-306862 A

  This technique creates a search expression by allowing a user to specify a Venn diagram area representing a combination of keywords displayed on a screen.

However, in the conventional navigation device, the user has to specify a logical operator for each search condition.
For this reason, it is necessary to perform both operations of inputting a search character and specifying a logical operator, which is an operation burden. In particular, in a navigation device in which the search target range is limited to a specific building, point, or the like, the designation of a logical operator has reduced the operation efficiency.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to automatically set an appropriate logical operator.

(1) In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the input means for inputting a search word, the attribute acquisition means for acquiring the attribute of the input search word, and the input means When the search term and the second search term are input, the attribute acquisition means acquires the attributes of these search terms, and the combination of the acquired attributes causes the first search term and the second search term to be acquired. Determining means for determining a logical operator for the output, and output means for outputting a search object corresponding to a search word subjected to an operation by the determined logical operator , wherein the determining means includes the first search word And the second search word do not belong to the same attribute, the logical product of the first search word and the second search word is determined, and the first search word and the second search word are determined. Are belonging to the same attribute, the first detection in the attribute is A dependency relationship between a word and the second search word is determined, and a logical product is determined when the first search word and the second search word have a dependency relationship, and when there is no dependency relationship, a logical product is determined. Provided is a search device characterized by determining a sum .
(2) In the invention according to claim 2, the determination means represents the place name of the first search word when both the first search word and the second search word are attributes of an address. If the area includes the area represented by the place name of the second search word, it is determined that the second search word is subordinate to the first search word, and the logical product is determined. The search device according to claim 1 is provided.
( 3 ) In the invention described in claim 3 , the attribute acquisition means acquires an attribute of the input search word using a preset correspondence between the search word and the attribute. Alternatively, a search device according to claim 2 is provided.
( 4 ) In the invention described in claim 4 , destination setting means for setting a search target searched by the search device according to claim 1 , claim 2 or claim 3 as a destination, and the set purpose There is provided a navigation device characterized by comprising guidance means for guiding a vehicle to the ground.
( 5 ) In the invention according to claim 5 , an input function for inputting a search word, an attribute acquisition function for acquiring an attribute of the input search word, and a first search word and a second search by the input function When a word is input, the attribute of these search terms is acquired by the attribute acquisition function, and a logical operator for the first search word and the second search word is determined by a combination of the acquired attributes A search program for realizing a function and an output function for outputting a search target corresponding to a search word subjected to an operation by the determined logical operator, wherein the determination function is executed by the computer. If the first search word and the second search word do not belong to the same attribute, a logical product of the first search word and the second search word is determined, and the first search word and the second search word are determined. Two search terms belong to the same attribute In this case, a dependency relationship between the first search word and the second search word in the attribute is determined, and if there is a dependency relationship between the first search word and the second search word, a logic is determined. Provided is a search program characterized by determining a product and determining a logical sum when there is no dependency.

In the first aspect of the present invention, an appropriate search condition is automatically set by setting an attribute for the first search word and the second search word and determining a logical operator based on a combination of the attributes. Can do.
In the invention according to claim 2, by setting a dependency relationship to the search word within the same attribute and determining a logical operator based on the dependency relationship, an appropriate search condition can be set for the search word within the same attribute. Can be set.
In the third aspect of the invention, a logical product can be set when there is a dependency, and a logical sum can be set when there is no dependency.
In the invention according to the fourth aspect, the attributes of the search terms can be automatically set by setting the attributes for the search terms in advance.
In the invention according to claim 5, the search device according to any one of claims 1 to 4 can be mounted on a navigation device and used for destination guidance.
According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, a computer program for realizing the search device corresponding to the first aspect by a computer can be provided.

(1) Outline of Embodiment In the navigation device 1, a keyword can be input by designating any attribute of “name”, “address”, and “genre” by using the attribute tab 87 (FIG. 2A). it can.
The navigation device 1 sets a search condition for a keyword between different attributes by logical product, and for keywords belonging to the same attribute by logical product when there is a dependency, or logical sum when there is not. Set the search condition by.
As described above, when the keyword is input, the navigation device 1 can select an appropriate logical operator based on the attribute and automatically set the search condition.

In addition, the navigation device 1 displays an approximate number of items to be searched in the number-of-times area 86 while executing the search.
If the search condition consists of logical products, the maximum number of search results is the smallest number of search targets for each keyword. Since the maximum number of search results is the sum of the number of search targets for each keyword, this is displayed.
By displaying the approximate number of search targets, the user can determine whether to add or delete a keyword.

(2) Details of Embodiment FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram of a navigation apparatus to which this embodiment is applied.
The navigation device is mounted on a vehicle and includes a current position detection device 10, an information processing control device 20, an input / output device 40, and an information storage device 50 as shown in FIG. First, the current position detection device 10 has the following configuration. The absolute direction sensor 11 is, for example, a geomagnetic sensor that detects in which direction the vehicle is located based on the detection of the N direction based on a magnet, and may be any means that detects the absolute direction.

The relative azimuth sensor 12 detects, for example, whether or not an intersection is bent, and may be an optical rotation sensor attached to the rotating part of the handle, a rotational resistance volume, or an angle sensor attached to the wheel part.
Further, a gyro sensor that detects a change in angle using an angular velocity may be used. That is, any means capable of detecting an angle that has changed relative to the reference angle (absolute direction) may be used.
The distance sensor 13 may be, for example, one that detects and counts the rotation of a wheel, or one that detects acceleration and integrates twice. That is, any means capable of measuring the moving distance of the vehicle may be used.

The GPS receiver 14 is a device that receives a signal from an artificial satellite, and can obtain various information such as the signal transmission time, the position information of the receiver, the moving speed of the receiver, and the traveling direction of the receiver.
The beacon receiving device 15 is a device that receives a signal transmitted from a transmitting device installed at a specific point. In particular, VICS information can be obtained, and information related to vehicle travel such as traffic jam information, current position information, and parking lot information can be obtained.

The data transmission / reception device 16 is a device for communicating with the outside of the vehicle using a telephone line or radio waves and exchanging information.
For example, there are various usage methods such as a car phone, ATIS, VICS, GPS correction, and inter-vehicle communication, and it is possible to input / output information related to traveling.
Next, the information processing control device 20 performs calculation and control based on the information input from the current position detection device 10 and the input / output device 40 and the information stored in the information storage device 50, and displays the calculation result on the display 42. , A means for controlling to output to the output means such as the printer 43 or the speaker 44.

The information processing control device 20 has the following configuration.
The central processing unit (CPU) 21 performs overall calculation and control of the entire navigation device.
The first ROM 22 stores a navigation program, in particular, a navigation program related to current position detection, route search, display guidance, and the like.
The sensor input interface 23 is a means for receiving information from the current position detection device 10.

The RAM 24 stores information input by the user such as destination information and passage point information input by the input device 41, which will be described later, and results calculated by the CPU 21 based on the user input information, This is a storage means for storing a route search result or map information read from the information storage device 50.
The communication interface 25 is a means for inputting / outputting information from the current position detecting means 10, particularly information obtained from the outside.

The second ROM 26 stores a program related to navigation, a navigation program related to voice guidance, and in particular, a search program for automatically setting a search condition (that is, a search condition formula) described later.
The image processor 27 is processing means for processing the vector information processed by the CPU 21 into image information.
The clock 28 keeps time.
The image memory 29 is means for storing image information processed by the image processor 27.
The audio processor 30 processes the audio information read from the information storage device 50 and outputs it to the speaker 44.

The input / output device 40 includes an input device 41 for inputting data such as a destination, a passage point, and a search condition by a user, a display 42 for displaying an image, a printer 43 for printing information, and a speaker 44 for outputting sound. The The input device 41 includes, for example, a touch panel, a touch switch, a joystick, a key switch, and the like disposed on the surface of the display 42.
The display 42 displays a map around the current location, various operation screens, and a travel route to the destination.

The information storage device 50 is connected to the information processing control device 20 via the transmission path 45.
The information storage device 50 includes a map data file 51, an intersection data file 52, a node data file 53, a road data file 54, a photo data file 55, a destination data file 56, a guidance point data file 57, a keyword data file 58, and offset data. A file 59 and other data files 60 are stored.
The information storage device 50 is generally composed of a DVD-ROM or CD-ROM that is an optical storage medium, or a hard disk that is a magnetic storage medium, but various information such as a magneto-optical disk and a semiconductor memory. You may comprise with a storage medium.

  The map data file 51 stores map data such as a national road map, a road map of each region, or a house map. The road map is composed of roads such as main arterial roads, expressways, narrow streets, and ground targets (facility etc.). A house map is a city map in which a figure representing an outer shape of a ground building, a road name, and the like are displayed. A narrow street is, for example, a relatively narrow road having a road width equal to or less than a predetermined value below a national road or prefectural road, and road to which traffic regulation information such as “one-way” is not added.

  In the intersection data file 52, data on intersections such as the geographical position coordinates and names of the intersections are stored in the road data file 54. Is the road location and type, the number of lanes, and road-related data such as the connection relationship between the roads, and the photo data file 55 shows various facilities, sightseeing spots, or places where visual indications such as major intersections are required. The image data of the copied photograph is stored in the guide point data file 57 in the other data file 59. The guidance data of the point where guidance is required, such as the contents of the guidance display board installed on the road and the guidance of the branch point, is provided. Other data are stored in the.

Although details will be described later, the destination data file 56 stores the name of a destination to be searched, a search key, a keyword, and the like. Both the search key and the keyword are associated with the search target, and are used as search terms for the navigation device 1 to perform a search.
The keyword data file 58 stores keywords that define attributes and subordinate relationships within the same attribute.
The navigation device 1 can specify a search target by searching the destination data file 56 for a keyword corresponding to a logical expression composed of the keywords selected in the keyword data file 58.

FIG. 2A is a diagram showing an example of the search word input screen 80 displayed on the display 42.
A touch panel constituting the input device 41 (FIG. 1) is formed on the surface of the display 42. When the user touches a button or the like displayed on the display 42, information corresponding to the button is input to the navigation device 1. Can be done.
The search word input field 81 is a field for selecting a character with the character button group 84 and inputting a search word.
For example, if the user inputs “to”, a keyword such as “Toa” that matches “to” is displayed, and if “u” is subsequently input, “toyo” that matches “to” in front The keyword is displayed.
In this way, each time the user inputs a character, keywords that match the front are narrowed down.

The attribute tab 87 is a tab button for selecting a keyword attribute.
Thus, the navigation device 1 includes attribute acquisition means for acquiring the attribute of the search term.
In the present embodiment, three attributes of “name”, “address”, and “genre” are set for the keyword, and these can be selected by the attribute tab 87.
For example, “Tokyo” is sometimes used for names such as “Tokyo Denverland” or “Shinjuku-ku XX” in Tokyo. One attribute is granted.
Therefore, the navigation apparatus 1 has the user select which attribute is selected by selecting the attribute tab 87.

The search term setting column 89 is a column for determining a search term and setting a search condition, and functions as an input unit for inputting a search term.
In the search word setting field 89, characters selected by the user with the character button group 84 are displayed in an unconfirmed state, and when the user selects a keyword in the search word input field 81, the keyword is displayed in an unconfirmed state. .
When the user selects the next word button 88, the character string in the search word setting field 89 is fixed and displayed in a determined state. In the figure, a character string is enclosed by a rectangle in order to indicate a confirmed state.

For example, when the user inputs “to”, “to” is displayed in an unconfirmed state in the search word setting field 89, and when the user selects “Tokyo” displayed in the search word input field 81, the search word setting field In 89, the character string “Tokyo” is displayed in an unconfirmed state.
When the user selects the next word button 88, the character string “Tokyo” is confirmed and displayed in a confirmed state.

When a plurality of search terms are input in the search term setting field 89, the navigation device 1 automatically selects a logical operator by a method to be described later and combines these search terms. Set.
Each time a search word is confirmed in the search word setting field 89, a logical operator is set to obtain a new search condition, and the navigation device 1 performs a search with the new search condition each time.

For example, when the search term “Tokyo” (attribute is a name) is input and confirmed, the navigation apparatus 1 starts a search with the name “Tokyo”, and the user further selects “Land” (the attribute is a name. If the input is confirmed, the navigation apparatus 1 sets a conditional expression “Tokyo” (name) × “Land” (name) and newly starts a search using the conditional expression.
In this embodiment, the logical product operator is represented by “×”, and the logical sum operation is represented by “+”.

As described above, when the first search word and the second search word are input by the input unit, the navigation device 1 acquires the attributes of these search words, and the first search is performed according to the combination of the acquired attributes. A determination means for determining a logical operator for the word and the second search word is provided.
The navigation device 1 also includes conditional expression setting means for setting search conditions for a plurality of search terms using logical operators corresponding to the input search terms.

The number area 86 is an area for displaying an approximate number of search objects corresponding to the search condition set in the search word setting field 89.
In the search term setting field 89, when the number of items to be searched is fixed, a fixed value is displayed. In the case of an approximate number, “less than XX items”, “more than XX items”, or “XX items” Thus, the range of the number of cases is displayed by notation such as “XX or less cases”.
In the present embodiment, the maximum number of search targets that can be searched is displayed as an approximate number by a method described later.

Since it takes a certain amount of time to narrow down search targets that match the set search criteria and display the results, it is possible to determine whether new keywords should be added or deleted during this time by displaying approximate numbers. Can be sent to the user.
If the approximate number is displayed until the search result is output, the approximate number may be displayed continuously during the search period or may be temporarily displayed.
As described above, the navigation device 1 includes an approximate number calculation unit that calculates an approximate number of search targets that meet the set search condition, and an approximate number display unit that displays the calculated approximate number until the search result is output. ing.

In the example of the figure, “1083 cases” is set. This is displayed as a fixed value because the target corresponding to the keyword “Tokyo” was identified in a short time.
This allows the user to know how much of the search criteria are narrowed down before the search results are output, and to decide whether to add more search terms or relax the search criteria Can do.

The return button 83 is a button for returning to the previous screen, and the correction button 82 is a button for correcting the contents of the search word setting field 89.
The next word button 88 is a button for confirming the keyword input in the search word setting field 89 as described above.
The completion button 85 is a button for completing input on the search word input screen 80 and shifting to a search result screen 79 (FIG. 3) described later.

FIG. 2B shows a case where the keyword “Land” (attribute is name) is added to the search term setting field 89.
As shown in the figure, the previously entered “Tokyo” (name) and the newly entered “rando” (name) are combined by AND (“AND” in the figure), and “Tokyo” x “rando” Is automatically set.
In the number area 86, the maximum number “28” of objects to be searched for “Tokyo” × “Rando” is displayed as an approximate number together with “below”.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the search result screen 79, and shows search results for the search conditions “Tokyo” × “Rando” set on the search word input screen 80.
The search result display column 66 is a column for displaying a list of the searched spot names together with the search conditions. In the example shown in the figure, up to five items can be displayed at a time, and the top five point names such as “Tokyo Denverland” and “Tokyo Wangerland” are displayed in the order of search order.
As described above, the navigation device 1 includes an output unit that outputs a search word that has been subjected to a calculation using a logical operator determined by selection, that is, a search target corresponding to a search condition.

Here, when the user selects “Tokyo Denverland”, the navigation device 1 searches the information storage device 50 for information such as coordinate values related to “Tokyo Denverland”, sets the information as the destination, and the current position detection device 10. Etc. to guide the vehicle to the destination “Tokyo Denverland”.
The search result screen 79 is provided with a number area 69, and a fixed value of the number of search target items is displayed.
As described above, the navigation device 1 includes guidance means for guiding the vehicle to the destination searched by the above procedure.

The detail button 67 is displayed for each spot name, and when the user touches the detail button 67 of the desired spot name, the navigation device 1 searches for spot information corresponding to the spot name and displays it on the display 42.
The previous button 74 and the next button 77 are buttons for scrolling down and scrolling up the point names in the search result display field 66 one by one.

The page buttons 75 and 76 are buttons for scrolling down and scrolling up the point names in the search result display field 66 in page units, respectively.
The scroll bar 71 represents the position of the currently displayed result among all the search results, and can be scrolled up or down by touching and dragging the scroll bar 71.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a logical configuration of the destination data file 56.
The item “point name” is a character string that represents a search target, and is used to be displayed as a search result on the search result screen 79.
The item “search key” is a kana notation of the location name.
When the user inputs a search word by inputting characters without inputting a keyword, the corresponding character string is searched by “search key”.

The item “keyword” is a keyword set for the location name, and the keyword is set over three attributes of “name”, “address”, and “genre”.
The keyword input by the user is collated with the keyword of the keyword data file 58 for each attribute, and a matching search target is extracted as a search result.
For example, for the search target “University of Tsukuba”, “Tsukuba” and “Daigaku” are registered as name attributes.
Although not shown, keywords such as “Ibaraki Ken” and “Tsukubashi” are registered in the address attribute, and keywords such as “Daigaku” and “Kyoiku” are registered in the genre attribute.
The item “coordinate” is a coordinate value such as the latitude and longitude of the point, and the item “telephone number” is the telephone number of the facility located at the point. Furthermore, the item “additional information” is additional information.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a logical configuration of the keyword data file 58.
As shown in the figure, the keyword data file 58 is divided into three attributes: name, address, and genre. The name is a name keyword, the address is an address keyword, and the genre is a genre. The keyword for is stored.
When “name”, “address”, and “genre” are selected on the attribute tab 87 of the search word input screen 80 (FIG. 2A), the navigation device 1 displays “name”, “address”, A keyword corresponding to the search word is searched and extracted from the keywords for “genre” and displayed in the search word input field 81.

As a name keyword, for example, a keyword for searching for a proper noun of a facility such as “Super” is stored.
As keywords for genres, for example, keywords relating to genres to be searched such as “view / play” and “suki” are stored.
As keywords for the address, keywords relating to the location address to be searched such as “Tokyo”, “Osaka”, “Toyonaka”, and the like are stored.

Among these attributes, a dependency relationship is set in the keyword data file 58 for the genre keyword and the address keyword. Hereinafter, these dependency relationships will be described.
FIG. 6A is a diagram showing an example of the dependency relationship set for the genre keyword.
For example, for the genre keyword “view / play”, “view / play” is the higher rank, and “subject / subject” is subordinate to “sukijo / sunobojo”, “gorufujo”, “golfurejujo”. Is set.

Furthermore, “Sukijo / Sunobojo”, “Gorfujo”, and “Gurufunjo” have no dependency and are equal.
In addition, “Kuyo Karin” is subordinate to “Sukiyohin”, “Gurufuyohin”, “Shokuyoyo”, and “Sukiyohin”, “Gurufuyohin”, “Shokuyoyo” “Hin” is equal to each other.
The upper keywords “view / play” and “ka-kari” have no subordination and are equal.

Although details will be described later, the navigation device 1 sets the search condition by logical conjunction by combining these with the logical product operator when the input keywords belong to different attributes. If there is, a search condition is set by combining these with a logical product operator, and a search condition is set by combining with a logical sum operator when there is no dependency.
Therefore, for example, when the genre is specified and the keywords “view” and “golf” are input, the navigation device 1 sets a search condition of “view” × “golf” because there is a dependency relationship between them, and “see” When “Kau” is entered, since there is no dependency relationship between them, a search condition “view” + “ka” is set.

Therefore, according to the keyword dependency system shown in FIG. 6A, if the keyword is “golf” as shown in FIG. 6B, the search target is “view / play” − “golf”. ”(Representing the subordinate relationship by“ − ”),“ Miru Asobu ”,“ Golfu Renjujo ”, and“ Kau-Kariru ”-“ Gorfuyohin ”.
If the keyword is "Suki", the search target is "view / play"-"Sukijo / Sunobojo", "Kau / Kariru"-"sukiyoyou", etc. Become.

Furthermore, if the keywords are “golfu” and “kau”, there is a dependency relationship between them, so “golfu” x “kau” is the search condition, and the facility corresponds to “kau / kariru”-“gorufuyohin” Etc. are to be searched.
If the keyword is “Gurufuyo-hin”, the facilities corresponding to “Kau Kariru”-“Gurufuyo-hin” are to be searched.

Each diagram in FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining the dependency relationship set for the address keyword.
In the present embodiment, the address keyword dependency relationship is set according to the place name dependency relationship for each prefecture.
That is, when an area represented by another place name is included in the area represented by one place name, the other place name is set to be subordinate to the one place name.

FIG. 7 (a) is an abbreviated map, and as shown in this figure, Okazaki City and Anjo City located in Aichi Prefecture are adjacent to each other, and there is no relationship in which one includes the other. , The subordinate relationship is not set for the keywords “Okazaki” and “Anjoshi”.
For this reason, when “okazaki” and “anjo” are entered as keywords, the navigation apparatus 1 sets a search condition of “okazaki” + “anjo” by taking the logical sum, and Okazaki City Alternatively, facilities located in Anjo City are targeted for search.
Even if they are not adjacent to each other, a dependency relationship is not set even when they are geographically separated, for example, Osaka and Tokyo.

On the other hand, in the example of FIG. 7B, since Aichi Prefecture includes Okazaki City, the keyword “Okazaki” corresponds to and subordinates to the keyword “Aichiken”.
For this reason, when “Aichiken” and “Okazaki” are entered as keywords, the navigation apparatus 1 sets a search condition “Aichiken” × “Okizaki” by taking the logical product, and Okazaki, Aichi Prefecture. The facilities located in are searchable.

Further, a case where a plurality of the same place names exist will be described with reference to FIGS.
Here, it is assumed that Mihama Town exists only in Aichi Prefecture, Wakayama Prefecture, and Fukui Prefecture as shown in FIG.
In this case, if you enter "Mihamachi" as a keyword, these three Mihama towns are subordinate to "Aichiken", "Wakayamaken", and "Fukuiken", respectively, and these three prefectures have subordinate relationships. Therefore, the navigation device 1 combines these with logical products and logical sums, and (“Aichiken” × “Mihamacho”) + (“Wakayamaken” × “Mihamacho”) + (“Fukui” "Ken" x "Mihamachi") is set.
As a result, facilities located in Mihama Town, Aichi Prefecture, Mihama Town, Wakayama Prefecture, Mihama Town, Fukui Prefecture, and the like are searched.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 7B, if “Aichiken”, “Wakawaken”, “Mihamacho” are entered as keywords, “Aichiken” and “Wakayamaken” are equivalent, Since “Mihamacho” is subordinate to these, the navigation device 1 sets a search condition of (“Aichiken” × “Mihamacho”) + (“Wakayamaken” × “Mimahacho”). In addition, facilities located in Mihama Town, Aichi Prefecture and Mihama Town, Wakayama Prefecture are targeted for search, and facilities located in Mihama Town, Fukui Prefecture are not retrieved.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a list of logical operators that the navigation apparatus 1 sets for keyword combinations.
In this table, the logical product is represented by “AND”, and the logical sum is represented by “OR”.
As shown in the figure, the navigation device 1 sets a search condition based on logical product when the attributes of two keywords are different, such as “name” and “address”.
.

When both attributes are “name”, the search condition is set by logical product.
On the other hand, when both keywords are “address” or “genre”, a logical operator is selected depending on whether or not there is a dependency, and if there is a dependency, the logical product has no dependency. In this case, a logical sum is selected.

Next, the process in which the navigation device 1 displays approximate numbers will be described with reference to FIGS.
Here, as an example, description will be made using the genre keywords “play”, “kau”, and “tenis”.
As shown in FIG. 10 (a), “Play” and “Kau” are equal, and there is no dependency relationship. With regard to “Play” and “Tenis”, “Play” is ranked higher. There is a subordinate relationship with “Tenisu” as a subordinate.

As shown in FIG. 10B, when the user designates a genre as an attribute and inputs “play” and “tenis” as keywords, since there is a dependency relationship between them, the navigation device 1 Sets a search condition of “play” × “tenis” by logical product.
Here, there are 823 search targets corresponding to the keyword “play”, 28 search targets corresponding to “tenis”, and 13 search targets corresponding to “play” × “tenis”. Suppose.

During the search by the logical product, the navigation device 1 displays 28 cases corresponding to “Tenis” as an approximate number in the number area 86 (FIG. 2A) together with the notation “below”, When the search is completed, 13 confirmed values are displayed in the number of areas 69 (FIG. 3).
That is, when the search condition of A × B by keywords A and B is considered, the maximum number of cases that can be searched is the smaller of the number corresponding to keyword A and the number corresponding to keyword B. Therefore, the navigation device 1 displays the smaller number of cases as an approximate number together with the notation “below”.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 10 (c), when the user designates a genre as an attribute and inputs “Kau” and “Tenis” as keywords, there is no dependency relationship between them. The apparatus 1 sets a search condition of “ka” + “tenis” by logical sum.
Here, there are 726 search targets corresponding to the keyword “Kausu”, 28 search targets corresponding to “Tenis”, and 736 (= 726 + 28-18).

During the search by the logical sum, the navigation device 1 displays 854 corresponding to the sum of “Kau” and “Tenis” together with the description “below” in the number area 86 (FIG. 2 (a )) As an approximate number, and when the search is completed, 736 confirmed values are displayed in the number of areas 69 (FIG. 3).
That is, when the search condition A + B by keywords A and B is considered, the maximum number of cases that can be searched is the sum of the number of cases corresponding to keyword A and the number of cases corresponding to keyword B. The device 1 displays the sum as an approximate number together with the notation “below”.

When conditional expression A + B is considered, the number of searches is greater than the larger of the number corresponding to keyword A and the number corresponding to keyword B, so the number is displayed together with the notation “above”. It can also be configured as follows.
For example, in the case of FIG. 10C, the number of searches is “726” or more for “Kau”, so that “726 or more, 854 or less” can be displayed.

FIG. 11 is a table showing an example of approximate number transitions associated with keyword input. A description will be given below corresponding to the input fields in the table.
(Enter name 1)
First, when name 1 (abbreviated as name 1 in the figure, the same applies below) is input as a keyword, navigation device 1 displays the number of search targets corresponding to name 1 as an approximate number.
Here, assuming that the number is 218, the navigation apparatus 1 displays “218” as an approximate number.
In the case of a single keyword, the number of search targets can be determined quickly. In this case, the navigation apparatus 1 simply displays “218” without indicating “below”.

(Enter address 1)
Next, when the address 1 is input as a keyword, the navigation apparatus 1 checks the number of search targets corresponding to the address 1 that is a newly input keyword. Here, it is assumed that there are 376 search targets corresponding to the address 1.
Next, since the attributes of the name 1 and the address 1 are different, the navigation apparatus 1 sets a search condition of name 1 × address 1 and executes a search based on the search condition.
Meanwhile, the navigation device 1 displays “218 or less” as an approximate number. This is because the number of names 1 (218) is smaller than the number of addresses 1 (376).
In the table, when the content is the same as the upper frame, it is indicated by “↑”.

(Enter genre 1)
Subsequently, when genre 1 is input as a keyword, the navigation apparatus 1 checks the keyword data file 58 for the number of search targets corresponding to the genre 1 as a newly input keyword. Here, it is assumed that there are 151 search targets corresponding to genre 1.
Next, since the attributes of name 1, address 1, and genre 1 are different, the navigation apparatus 1 sets a search condition of name 1 × address 1 × genre 1 and executes a search based on the search condition.
Meanwhile, the navigation device 1 displays “151 or less” as an approximate number. This is because the number of genres 1 (151) is smaller than the number of names 1 (218) and the number of addresses 1 (376).

(Enter name 2)
Further, assume that name 2 is input as a keyword. In this case, the navigation device 1 checks the number of search targets corresponding to the name 2 that is a newly input keyword. Here, it is assumed that there are 318 search targets corresponding to name 2.
Next, the navigation device 1 sets logical expressions for the name 1 input earlier and the name 2 input later, and obtains an approximate number for the logical expression.

As described above, when a keyword is added later and the same attribute is already input, the navigation device 1 first obtains an approximate number for the keyword having the same attribute.
This is to make effective use of search results that have already been searched. This will be described in a later modification.

Here, since they are names, the conditional expression is name 1 × name 2, and name 1 has fewer cases than name 2, so the approximate number of name attributes is 218 (number 1).
As a result, the navigation apparatus 1 obtains 218 approximate numbers of name 1 × name 2, 376 addresses 1, and 151 genres 1.
Since the navigation device 1 performs a search by setting (name 1 × name 2) × address 1 × genre 1 as a search condition, “151 or less” is displayed as an approximate number using the number of genres with the smallest number. To do.

(Enter address 2)
Furthermore, when the user inputs the address 2 as a keyword, the navigation device 1 first obtains the number (119) corresponding to the address 2.
Next, the navigation apparatus 1 confirms the dependency relationship between the address 1 and the address 2 and selects a logical operator corresponding to the dependency.
Here, it is assumed that there is no dependency, and the navigation apparatus 1 selects a logical sum and sets a search condition of address 1 + address 2.

Then, the navigation device 1 calculates 495 (376 + 119) as an approximate number of the address 1 + address 2. In the case of logical product, it is 119.
Next, the navigation device 1 uses (name 1 × name 2) × (address 1 + address 2) × genre 1 as a search condition. At this stage, the approximate number of name attributes is 218, and the approximate number of address attributes is 495. Since the number of cases and genre attributes is 151, “151 or less” is displayed using 151 cases with the smallest approximate number.

(Enter genre 2)
Next, assuming that genre 2 is input, the navigation apparatus 1 determines the number (48) of genre 2.
Here, it is assumed that there is no dependency between genre 1 and genre 2, and navigation device 1 sets a search condition of genre 1 + genre 2.
Then, the navigation device 1 calculates 199 (151 + 48) as an approximate number of genre 1 + genre 2. In the case of logical product, it is 48.
Next, the navigation device 1 uses (name 1 × name 2) × (address 1 + address 2) × (genre 1 × genre 2) as search conditions. At this stage, the approximate number of name attributes is 218, Since the approximate number of attributes is 495 and the approximate number of genre attributes is 199, “199 or less” is displayed by using the smallest approximate number of 199 cases.

Next, the procedure in which the navigation apparatus 1 displays an approximate number is demonstrated using the flowchart of FIG.
First, when a keyword is input, the navigation device 1 determines the attribute of this keyword.
When the name is input (step 5; Y), the navigation device 1 sets the name and logical expression already input and counts the number of cases in the attribute (step 10).

When the name is not input (step 5; N), the navigation device 1 determines whether an address is input (step 15). When the address is input (step 15; Y), the navigation device 1 has already been input. The inputted address and logical expression are set, and the number of cases in the attribute is counted (step 20).
When the attribute is an address, the navigation device 1 checks the dependency relationship between the already input address and the newly input address. Sets a logical expression by logical sum.

If no address is input (step 15; N), the navigation device 1 determines whether a genre is input (step 25). If a genre is input (step 25; Y), the navigation device 1 has already been input. The entered genre and logical expression are set, and the number of cases in the attribute is counted (step 30).
When the attribute is a genre, the navigation device 1 checks the dependency relationship between the already input genre and the newly input genre. Sets a logical expression by logical sum.

As described above, after counting the number of cases in each attribute, the navigation device 1 obtains the minimum number of cases of each attribute that is effective as an approximate number (step 35).
And the navigation apparatus 1 displays the said number of cases with the description of "below" (step 40).

Next, a procedure for performing the attribute count in steps 10, 20, and 30 of FIG. 12 will be described using the flowchart of FIG.
First, the navigation device 1 determines a logical operator to be employed (step 50). The navigation device 1 adopts logical product when the attribute is a name, adopts logical product when there is a dependency relationship, adopts logical product when there is no dependency, and logical sum when there is no attribute. When there is a dependency, logical product is used, and when there is no dependency, logical sum is adopted.

When the logical operator determined in this way is a logical sum (step 55; OR), the navigation device 1 employs the sum of the numbers of both sides connected by the logical operator as an approximate number (step 75).
When the determined logical operator is a logical product (step 55; AND), the navigation device 1 checks how the number of cases on both sides of the logical operator is large (step 60).

When the number of cases on the right side is smaller than the number of cases on the left side (step 60;>), the navigation device 1 employs the number of cases on the right side as an approximate number (step 65).
When the number of cases on the left side is less than or equal to the number of cases on the right side (step 60; ≦), the navigation device 1 employs the number of cases on the left side as an approximate number (step 70).
Next, the navigation device 1 confirms whether all logical operators have been processed (step 80). If there is an unprocessed one (step 80; N), the navigation device 1 returns to step 50 to continue the processing. If all the processes have been processed (step 80; Y), the process ends and the process returns to the main routine.

The following effects can be obtained by the present embodiment described above.
(1) When a user specifies an attribute and inputs a keyword, an appropriate logical operator can be automatically set based on the attribute.
(2) For keywords belonging to the same attribute, an appropriate logical operator can be automatically set based on the dependency.
(3) Since the logical operator is automatically set, the user can sequentially input the keywords that have come up without considering what search conditions are set.
(4) The approximate number of search targets for the input keyword can be displayed.
(5) Each time a user inputs a keyword, an approximate number based on a new search condition can be displayed.
(6) The user can quantitatively grasp the range of the search target based on the keyword input by the user based on the approximate number, and can add or delete the keyword based on this.

(Modification)
In the embodiment described above, the user designates which attribute keyword “name”, “address”, or “genre” is to be input. However, in this modification, the navigation apparatus 1 automatically assigns the attribute. to decide.
For example, it is assumed that the keyword “Tokyo” has both “name” and “address” attributes set.
In this case, when the user inputs the keyword “Tokyo”, the navigation apparatus 1 recognizes the two keywords “Tokyo (name)” and “Tokyo (address)”.
Here, for identification, the attribute is written in parentheses after the keyword.

  Therefore, assuming that the attribute “name” is set for the keyword “Land”, and the user inputs two keywords “Tokyo” and “Rando”, the navigation device 1 displays “Tokyo (name)” and “Land ( Name) ”,“ Tokyo (address) ”and“ Land (name) ”are recognized as input, and“ Tokyo (name) ”ד Land (name) ”and“ Tokyo (address) ”ד Search for both “Land (name)”.

FIG. 14 is a diagram for explaining an example in which the navigation device 1 automatically sets keyword attributes and displays approximate numbers.
(Enter keyword 1)
First, assume that the user inputs the keyword 1. Then, the navigation apparatus 1 searches for the keyword 1 by each attribute of the keyword data file 58 (FIG. 5), and sets the attribute to the keyword 1 when there is a corresponding one.

Here, it is assumed that there are a name and an address as attributes corresponding to the keyword 1, and the former is the keyword 1a and the latter is the keyword 1b. In the figure, they are simply indicated as 1a and 1b.
As described above, when the user inputs the keyword 1 without designating the attribute, the navigation device 1 according to the present modification searches each attribute of the keyword data file 58 and automatically sets the corresponding attribute.

  When the navigation device 1 obtains the keyword 1a and the keyword 1b, the navigation device 1 counts the number of search targets corresponding to these keywords. Assume that there are 253 keywords 1a and 196 keywords 1b.

Next, the navigation device 1 sets a search condition of keyword 1a × keyword 1b according to the table of FIG. 9, and displays the approximate number “196 or less” using 196 keywords 1b with a small number of cases.
The navigation device 1 executes a search using the keywords 1a and 1b and the keyword 1a × the keyword 1b while displaying the approximate number, and the search result is stored in the RAM 24 (see FIG. 1) or the information storage device 50 or the like.
This result is used for search processing when a keyword is additionally input later.

(Enter keyword 2)
Subsequently, it is assumed that the user inputs the keyword 2. The navigation device 1 searches the keyword data file 58 for the keyword 2 and sets the attribute of the keyword 2.
Here, it is assumed that there is one having a genre attribute, and this is a keyword 2c.

When the attribute is set, the navigation device 1 counts the number of search targets corresponding to the keyword 2c. Here, it is assumed that there are 134 search targets corresponding to the keyword 2c.
The navigation device 1 sets a search condition of 1a × 1b × 2c in accordance with the table of FIG. 9, and displays “134 or less” as the approximate number using the smallest number 134 of the numbers 1a to 2c.
The navigation device 1 executes a search by 2c, 1a × 1b × 2c while displaying an approximate number, and stores the search result in a storage medium.

(Enter keyword 3)
Further, assume that the user additionally inputs keyword 3. Some keywords 3 have name and address attributes. The former is the keyword 3a and the latter is the keyword 3b.
When the attribute of the keyword 3 is set, the navigation device 1 counts the number of search targets corresponding to the keyword 3a and the keyword 3b.
Here, it is assumed that there are 112 keywords 3a and 131 keywords 3b.

When a keyword is added, the navigation device 1 first counts approximate numbers within the same attribute.
Since there is no dependency with respect to the name attribute, a search condition of keyword 1a × keyword 3a is set, and 112 keywords 3a with a small number of cases are adopted as approximate numbers.
Here, regarding the address attribute, it is assumed that there is no dependency between the keyword 1b and the keyword 3b, and the navigation apparatus 1 sets a search condition of keyword 1b + keyword 3b according to the table of FIG. = 196 + 131) cases are adopted.

  Furthermore, the navigation device 1 sets a search condition of (1a × 3a) × (1b + 3b) × 2c according to the table of FIG. 9, but as approximate numbers, name attribute (1a × 3a), address attribute (1b + 3b), genre Of the number of attributes 2c, “112 or less” is displayed using the smallest number of 112.

The navigation device 1 executes a search by (1a × 3a) × (1b + 3b) × 2c while displaying the approximate number.
More specifically, the navigation device 1 executes a search according to (1a × 3a), then executes a search according to (1b + 3b), and further executes a search according to 2c, and calculates the logical product of these three results. The search process is performed by obtaining the search result, but the search result by 2c is already stored in the previous “input keyword 2” process, and this is used.
In this way, the navigation device 1 speeds up the search process by using the already stored search result when it can be used.
And the navigation apparatus 1 memorize | stores the search result by 1a * 3a, 1b + 3b, (1a * 3a) * (1b + 3b) * 2c.

(Enter keyword 4)
Further, assume that the user inputs the keyword 4. There is a keyword 4 having a genre attribute, which is referred to as a keyword 4c.
The navigation device 1 counts the number of search targets corresponding to the keyword 4c, and suppose that there are 68 cases.

Here, it is assumed that there is a dependency relationship between the keyword 2c and the keyword 4c, and the navigation apparatus 1 sets a search condition of keyword 2c × keyword 4c according to the table of FIG.
Then, the navigation device 1 uses 68 of the search targets of the keyword 2c and the keyword 4c, which has the smaller number, as an approximate number.

Further, the navigation device 1 sets a search condition of (1a × 3a) × (1b + 3b) × (2c × 4c) according to the table of FIG. 9, but as a rough number, the name attribute (1a × 3a), the address attribute ( 1b + 3b) and the number of genre attributes (2c × 4c), the smallest 68 are used to display “68 or less”.
The navigation device 1 performs a search by (2c × 4c) and a search by (1a × 3a) × (1b + 3b) × (2c × 4c) while displaying approximate numbers.

At this time, since the search result is already stored in the process of “input keyword 3” for the parts (1a × 3a) and (1b + 3b), the navigation device 1 uses this to speed up the search process. To do.
And the navigation apparatus 1 memorize | stores the search result by (2cx4c) and (1ax3a) x (1b + 3b) x (2cx4c) searched this time.
The navigation device 1 repeats the same processing until the user selects the completion button 85 (FIG. 2A).
Thus, the user can input keywords without specifying attributes while recognizing approximate numbers, and can narrow down the number of items to be searched.

The following effects can be obtained by the modification described above.
(1) The user can input a keyword without specifying an attribute.
(2) When a keyword is input, the navigation device 1 can determine the attribute of the keyword by searching the keyword data file 58 for each attribute.
(3) It is possible to speed up the search process by storing the intermediate results of the search and using them for a search when a keyword is newly input.

Moreover, the following structures can also be obtained by the navigation apparatus 1 of this Embodiment or a modification.
Input means for inputting a plurality of search terms associated with the search object, conditional expression setting means for setting search conditions for the plurality of input search words, and approximate number of search objects corresponding to the set search condition An approximate number calculating means for calculating, an output means for outputting a search object corresponding to the set search condition, and an approximate number display means for displaying the calculated approximate number until the output. A characteristic search device can be provided (first configuration).
Further, the approximate number calculating means can provide a search device having a first configuration characterized in that an approximate number is calculated based on the number of search targets corresponding to the input search word (second configuration). Constitution).
Further, the approximate number calculation means uses the maximum number of search targets that can be searched among the search targets corresponding to the input search terms as an approximate number, or A search device having a second configuration is provided (third configuration).
Further, when the search condition is a combination of the first search word and the second search word by a logical product, the approximate number calculation means includes the search object searched by the first search word, It is possible to provide a search device having a first configuration, a second configuration, or a third configuration characterized by acquiring a smaller number of search targets to be searched with the second search term. (Fourth configuration).
Further, when the search condition is a combination of the first search word and the second search word by a logical sum, the approximate number calculating means includes the search object searched by the first search word, To provide a search device according to any one of the first to fourth configurations, wherein the total number of search targets searched by the second search term is acquired. (Fifth configuration).
Further, destination setting means for setting a search target searched by the search device according to any one of the first to fifth configurations by the navigation device 1 as a destination, and the set destination A navigation device characterized by comprising a guidance means for guiding the vehicle to the vehicle (sixth configuration).
Further, an input function for inputting a plurality of search terms associated with the search target, a conditional expression setting function for setting search conditions for the plurality of input search terms, and a search target corresponding to the set search condition An approximate number calculation function for calculating an approximate number of output, an output function for outputting a search object corresponding to the set search condition, and an approximate number display function for displaying the calculated approximate number until the output. A search program to be realized can be provided (seventh configuration).

It is a system configuration figure of a navigation device. It is the figure which showed the search word input screen. It is the figure which showed the search result screen. It is the figure which showed the logical structure of the destination data file. It is the figure which showed the logical structure of the keyword data file. It is a figure for demonstrating the dependency relationship of the keyword for genres. It is a figure for demonstrating the dependency relationship of the keyword for addresses. It is a figure for demonstrating the case where two or more same place names exist. It is the figure which showed the list | wrist of the logical operator set with respect to the combination of a keyword. It is a figure for demonstrating the display process of an approximate number. It is the figure which showed the example of a transition of the approximate number. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the procedure which displays an approximate number. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the procedure which performs the count in an attribute. It is a figure for demonstrating the automatic setting of the attribute with respect to a keyword.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Navigation apparatus 10 Current position detection apparatus 20 Information processing control apparatus 40 Input / output apparatus 41 Input apparatus 42 Display 50 Information storage apparatus 56 Destination data file 58 Keyword data file 66 Search result display column 67 Details button 69 Number area 74 Previous button 75 Page button 76 Page button 77 Next button 79 Search result screen 80 Search word input screen 81 Search word input field 82 Modify button 83 Back button 84 Character button group 85 Complete button 86 Number area 87 Attribute tab 88 Next word button 89 Search word setting field

Claims (5)

An input means for entering a search term;
Attribute acquisition means for acquiring the attribute of the input search term;
When the first search word and the second search word are input by the input means, the attributes of the search words are acquired by the attribute acquisition means, and the first search word and the combination of the acquired attributes are used. Determining means for determining a logical operator for the second search term;
Output means for outputting a search target corresponding to a search term subjected to an operation by the determined logical operator ,
The determining means includes
If the first search word and the second search word do not belong to the same attribute, determine the logical product of the first search word and the second search word,
When the first search word and the second search word belong to the same attribute, a dependency relationship between the first search word and the second search word in the attribute is determined, and the first search word and the second search word are determined. If there is a dependency between the search term and the second search term, a logical product is determined, and if there is no dependency, a logical sum is determined.
A search device characterized by that .   The determination means, when both the first search word and the second search word are attributes of an address, in the area represented by the place name of the first search word, When the area represented by the place name is included, it is determined that the second search word is subordinate to the first search word, and the logical product is determined.
The search device according to claim 1. Said attribute obtaining means, the search device according to claim 1 or claim 2, characterized in that acquires attribute search terms that the input using the corresponding search term and attributes that are set in advance. Destination setting means for setting a search target searched by the search device according to claim 1 , claim 2 or claim 3 as a destination;
Guiding means for guiding the vehicle to the set destination;
A navigation device comprising: An input function for entering search terms;
An attribute acquisition function for acquiring the attribute of the input search term;
When the first search word and the second search word are input by the input function, the attributes of the search words are acquired by the attribute acquisition function, and the first search word and the combination of the acquired attributes are used. A determination function for determining a logical operator for the second search term;
An output function for outputting a search object corresponding to a search word subjected to an operation by the determined logical operator;
A search program that implements
The determination function is performed by the computer.
If the first search word and the second search word do not belong to the same attribute, determine the logical product of the first search word and the second search word,
When the first search word and the second search word belong to the same attribute, a dependency relationship between the first search word and the second search word in the attribute is determined, and the first search word and the second search word are determined. If there is a dependency between the search term and the second search term, a logical product is determined, and if there is no dependency, a logical sum is determined.
A search program characterized by that.

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